Are you one of the millions of readers who have been touched by the stories and art that have graced the pages of each of the magazines in the Cricket family? Do you remember your monthly dash to the mailbox, filled with anticipation and excitement, to see if the latest Cricket issue arrived? Did […]
As we begin celebrating the holiday season, it’s important to find ways to help others and act on our collective generous spirit. Giving Tuesday was created to celebrate generosity and to give. “It’s a simple idea. Just find a way for your family, your community, your company or your organization to come together to […]
Happy Turkey Day everyone! While you are waiting for the turkey to get perfectly browned, the potatoes to get soft, the drinks to get cold, and the football game to begin, why not settle down with your favorite kids and enjoy this smorgasbord of Thanksgiving treats from Cricket, including a poem appetizer, a non-fiction […]
When I was a kid, I remember having a penpal (or two) and I would wait eagerly for the letters and small packages that would occasionally arrive from faraway places. I guess that’s why I love the idea of those subscription boxes that seem to be everywhere these days. Scheduling something to come every month […]
If your child isn’t particularly enthused by history, it’s not their fault. History, while potentially a super exciting subject, has traditionally been treated as an after-thought in elementary school curriculums that are super-focused on math and reading. Often children are given only a glimpse into a historical subject and sometimes that glimpse doesn’t even do […]
The title of this blog comes from a line in a story my 9-year-old daughter wrote recently. It’s funny, right? My daughter is not so good with capital letters or commas or periods (not yet, at least), but she does have a way with language that gives me great hope that she will be a […]
I am so excited to write about family game night. My family loves playing games. We play cards at dinner (and yes, we even bring them to restaurants when we eat out). We play verbal games in the car while we’re driving. We play I Spy while we’re waiting in line at the bank. I’ve […]
I have to admit that I sometimes make the common America-centric mistake of thinking everyone else also celebrates OUR holidays. For example, in corresponding with a friend in England, and considering a visit at the end of November, I expressed my concern that the timing would interfere with their Thanksgiving plans. “Our what plans?” […]
Children have the best imaginations. Children look at the world from the inside out. Children love lyrical language. Daydreaming is a highly underrated art form. When you write for children, don’t write for children. Write from the child in you. It is better to show, than tell. Style is not how you write. It is […]
Are you having a difficult time getting yourself motivated to vote in this non-presidential election year? Yeah, me too. I have to admit that making the time to get over to my local voting place to vote in a few local contests is not really exciting to me. But it should be. My […]